Poisoned. Polluted. Stripped: Diary of a small planet in deep trouble.

News item: 2,500 residents of Times Beach, Missouri, pack and leave their homes because deadly dioxin is on their streets and in their wells.

News item: Illegal narcotics are becoming the third and second largest cash crop of several States.

News Item: The fish have all died in remote lakes in Norway because of acid rain from industrial, centers six hundred miles away.

 News Item: Jacques Cousteau, the deep-sea ocean expert, predicts that life within the oceans will be destroyed within twenty-five years.

News Item: 600 scientists from all over the world meet in Washington D. C and predict that a "medium-sized war, " employing only one-half of the presently-stored nuclear warheads, is all that will be needed to destroy mankind.

News Item: Word has leaked from high level leaders in Organized Labor that they are now prepared for a single massive strike that will so paralyze America that it will give no further opposition to Labor's demands.

We are on the edge of a terrible crisis, the worst in human history. Here is a very brief glimpse of some of what we are told about the last-day buildup of atmospheric, moral, economic and military problems:

"In the future the condition of things in the cities will grow more and more objectionable. . From the standpoint of health the smoke and dust of the cities are very objectionable."—Testimonies, Volume 7, page 82 (1902)

"Satan is working in the atmosphere; he is poisoning the atmosphere, and here we are dependent upon God for our lives—our present and eternal life."—Selected Messages, Book 2, page 52. (1890)"

"Wickedness and corruption will increase to such a degree that the very atmosphere of the cities will seem polluted." —Country Living, page 29 (1907)

In 1909 she announced that immense conflicts would come all over the world, and "terrible scenes of strife and oppression beyond anything they had conceived of among the nations of the earth. . The strife. . will break forth with an intensity that you do not now anticipate."—Life Sketches, page 421

"0 that God's people had a sense of the impending destruction of thousands of cities, now almost given to idolatry." —Review and Herald, September 10, 1903.

"Satan is working with all his art and enchantments to keep men marching blindly onward until the Lord arises out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquities, when the earth shall disclose her blood and no more cover her slain. The whole world appears to be in the march to death."—Manuscript 139, 1903.

"The tempest is coming, and we must get ready for its fury, by having repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord will arise to shake terribly the earth. We shall see troubles on all sides. Thousands of ships will be hurled into the depths of the sea. Navies will go down, and human lives will be sacrificed by millions."—Signs of the Times, April 21, 1890.

"Many continue in the careless gratification of self—until they become so disgusted with life that they kill themselves. Dancing and carousing, drinking and smoking, indulging their animal passions, they go as an ox to the slaughter."—Manuscript 139, 1903.

"I am bidden to declare the message that cities full of transgression, and sinful in the extreme, will be destroyed by earthquakes, by fire, by flood. All the world will be warned that there is a God who will display His authority as God. His unseen agencies will cause destruction, devastation, and death. All the accumulated riches will be as nothing."—Manuscript 35, 1906.

"Fires will break out unexpectedly, and no human effort will be able to quench them.. Disasters by rail will become more and more frequent; confusion, collision, and death without a moment's warning will occur on the great lines of travel. The end is near; probation is closing. Oh, let us seek God while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near!" —Signs of the Times, April 21, 1890.

"Soon great trouble will arise among the nations, —trouble that will not cease until Jesus comes." —Review and Herald, February 11, 1904.

"Calamities, earthquakes, floods, disasters by land and by sea will increase. God is looking upon the world today as He looked upon it in Noah's time. He is sending His message to people today as He did in the days of Noah."—Review and Herald, December 11, 1900.

"Anarchy is seeking to sweep away all law, not only divine, but human. The centralizing of wealth and power; the vast combinations for the enriching of the few at the expense of the many; the combinations of the poorer classes for the defense of their interests and claims; the spirit of unrest, of riot and bloodshed; the worldwide dissemination of the same teachings that led to the French Revolution [of 1789] —all are tending to involve the whole world in a struggle similar to that which convulsed France."—Education, page 228.

"The time is near, when large cities will be swept away." —Manuscript 53, 1910.

"The agencies of evil are combining their forces, and consolidating. They are strengthening for the last great crisis. Great changes are soon to take place in our world, and the final events will be rapid ones."— Testimonies, Volume 9, page 11 (1909).

"The spiritual darkness that covers the whole earth today, is intensified in the crowded centers of population."—Review and Herald, April 7, 1910.

"Satan is busily at work in our crowded cities. His work is to be seen in the confusion, the strife and discord between labor and capital, and the hypocrisy that has come into the churches. . Step by step, the world is reaching the conditions that existed in the days of Noah. Every conceivable crime is committed. . the force used to cause men to unite with con­federacies and unions—binding themselves up in bundles for the burning of the great fires of the last days—all these are the working of Satanic agencies. This round of crime and folly men call 'life' "—Manuscript 139, 1903.

" 'Out of the cities' is my message. . The time is near when large cities will be visited by the judgments of God. In a little while, these cities will be terribly shaken. No matter how large or how strong their buildings, no matter how many safe­guards against fire may have been provided; let God touch these buildings and in a few minutes or a few hours they are in ruins. The ungodly cities of our world are to be swept away by the besom of destruction." —Testimonies, Volume 7, page 83 (1902)

"The time is fast coming when the controlling power of the labor unions will be very oppressive. Again and again the lord has instructed me that the people are to take their families away from the cities into the country, where they can raise their own provisions; for in the future the problem of buying and selling will be a very serious one. . Get out of the cities into rural districts, where, the houses are not crowded closely together, and where you will be free from the interference of enemies."—Letter 5, 1904.

“The line of distinction between professed Christians and the ungodly is now hardly distinguishable. Many church members love what the world loves and are ready to join with them, and Satan determines to unite them in one body and thus strengthen his cause by sweeping all into the ranks of spiritualism. Papists, who boast of miracles as a certain sign of the true church, will be readily deceived by this wonder-working power; and Protestants, having cast away the shield of truth, will also be deluded. Papists, protestants, and worldlings will alike accept the form of godliness without the power, and they will see in this union a grand movement for the conversion of the world and the ushering in of the long-expected millennium."—Great Controversy; pages 588-589.

"There are not many, even among educators and statesmen, who comprehend the causes that underlie the present state of society. Those who hold the reins of government are not able to solve the problem of moral corruption, poverty, pauperism, and increasing crime. They are struggling in vain to place business operations on a more secure basis; If men would give more heed to the teachings of God's Word, they would find a solution."—Testimonies, Volume 9, page 13.

“Many ministers are teaching their people, and many professors and teachers are instructing their students, that the law of God [the Ten Commandments]—has been changed or abrogated [set aside]; and those who regard its requirements as still valid, to be literally obeyed, are thought to be deserving only of ridicule or contempt In rejecting the truth, men reject its Author. In trampling upon the law of God, they deny the authority of the lawgiver. . Though in a different form, idolatry exists in the Christian world today as verily as if existed among ancient Israel in the days of Elijah. The god of many professedly wise men, of philosophers, poets, politicians, journalists,—the god of polished fashionable circles, of many colleges and universities, even of some theological institutions,—is little better than Baal, the sun-god of Phoenicia.

“No error accepted by the Christian world strikes more boldly against the authority of Heaven, none is more pernicious in its results, than the modern doctrine, so rapidly gaining ground, that God’s law is no longer binding upon men. Every nation has its laws, which command respect and Obedience; no government could exist without them; and can it be conceived that the Creator of the heavens and the earth has no law to govern the beings He has made?"'—Great Controversy, pages 58-584.

“lt is Satan's Purpose to attract men and women to the cities, and to gain his object he invents every kind of novelty, and amusement, every kind of excitement And the cities of the earth today are becoming as were the cities before the Flood. . In the days before the Flood, every kind of amusement was invented to lead men and women to forgetfulness of God and sin. Today. . Satan is working with intensity, that the same conditions of evil shall prevail. And the earth is becoming corrupt. . At such a time as this, the people who are seeking to keep the commandments of God should look for retired places away from the cities." —Manuscript 85, 1908.

“Men are seeking to bring those engaged in the different trades under bondage to certain unions. This is not God's planning, but the planning of a power that we should in no wise acknowledge.. We are not to unite with secret societies or with trades unions. We are to stand free in God, looking constantly to Christ for instruction." —Testimonies, Volume 7, page 84 (1902).

“The trades unions will be one of the agencies that will bring upon this earth a time of trouble such as has not been since the world began."—Letter 200, 1903

"Fearful tests and trials await the people of God. The spirit of war is stirring the nations from one end of the earth to the other."— Testimonies, Volume 9, page 17. (1909)

"During a vision of the night, I stood on an eminence, from which I could see houses shaken like a reed in the wind. Buildings, great and small, were falling to the ground. Pleasure resorts, theaters, hotels, and the homes of the wealthy were shaken and shattered. Many lives were blotted out of existence, and the air was filled with the shrieks of the injured and the terrified."— Testimonies, Volume 9, page 92. (1909)

"Last Friday morning, just before I awoke, a very impressive scene was presented before me. I seemed to awake from sleep but was not in my home. From the windows I could behold a terrible conflagration. Great balls of fire were falling upon houses, and from these balls fiery arrows were flying in every direction. It was impossible to check the fires that were kindled, and many places were being destroyed. The terror of the people was indescribable."—Letter 278, 1906.

"In the world, gigantic monopolies will be formed. . A few men will combine to grasp all the means to be obtained in certain lines of business. [Also] trades unions will be formed, and those who refuse to join these unions will be marked men."—Letter 26, 1903.

"Erelong there will be such strife and confusion in the cities, that those who wish to leave them will not be able."—­Statement, April 6,1903.

It is clear that predictions given over half a century ago are now coming to pass. We are living in the time of the end.

CHAPTER TWELVE

THE TIME OF THE END      

The introductory and most far-reaching health vision came to Ellen White on June 6, 1863 at Otsego, Michigan. But her most important single vision—and the most comprehensive—came on March 14, 1858 at Lovett's Grove (now Bowling Green), Ohio. We have seen that in this vision at Lovett's Grove, a sweeping panorama was spread out before her—from the fall of Lucifer down to the final destruction of the wicked and beyond.

God has promised in the Bible to give us information through His prophets. And we have a wealth of material in the Bible. But in mercy to those living in these last days, facing as they do such a complexity of problems and crises,—God has given additional light that we need today.

It is because of our special need at this time, and because we face the greatest crisis in history since the time of the flood—that God has sent this light to us. There is a pattern to history. And the pattern repeats. When crises come, God sends warnings. And Satan often sends counterfeits to turn eyes away from the warnings. Less than fifteen hundred years after the time of Adam and Eve, God saw that the world was becoming so corrupt that destruction was ahead. And He sent a warning through a prophet—Noah. And we can well expect that the religionists and scientists of the day did everything they could to block the message. They succeeded remarkably well. Only eight people were saved when the Flood came.

The First Advent of Christ was another crisis for everyone. Their acceptance or rejection of Him would decide their eternal destiny. Jesus said that John was "Elijah which was to come" (see Matthew 11:14), reminding His hearers of the important prophecy in the last two verses of the Old Testament: Malachi 4: 5-6. But it is well-known by serious Bible students that that prophecy also refers to a time just before the Second Advent of Jesus. Just as Christ sent a messenger to prepare the way before His First Advent, so a messenger would be sent before His Second.

In the early nineteenth century, men discovered clear cut prophecies in the books of Daniel and Revelation that pointed to the year 1844 as a time when God would begin a work of judgment of this world. And with this, through other Bible prophecies, they discovered the great truth that the Second Coming of Christ to this earth was near.

Revelation 12, 13 and 14 foresaw a great final judgment-hour message before the end—over the issue of the Mark of the Beast. And Daniel 7 clarified still more the issues involved, while Daniel 8 and 9 dove­tailed together to predict 1844 as the time when this judgment would begin.

As a result, from 1830 through 1844, dedicated Bible students around the world, often with no contact with one another, stood up and warned men of the nearness of the Second Coming of Christ. It was generally thought that the end would come in or near 1844, when in reality it was a special work of judgment in heaven, just prior to His Second Advent, that began in that year.

For a moment, let us pause and consider the Biblical background behind this great truth—since it affects all of us living today:

The earthly sanctuary, built by special direction of God in the time of Moses (Ex 25:8-9 commanded; Ex 31:40 constructed), explained Heaven's plan to put away our sins through the atonement of Christ. This earthly tabernacle was patterned after the original that is in heaven (Ex 25:8-9,40; Heb 8:5). The earthly sanctuary was the "type," or prediction, of the heavenly Sanctuary, whose service would follow it. The earthly sanctuary had a first and a second apartment (Heb 9:1.5).

When Jesus died on Calvary in 31 A.D., the earthly, typical sanctuary no longer had significance in the eyes of God. For soon after His ascension to heaven, the mediation of Jesus, our great High Priest, began in the heavenly Sanctuary (Heb 8:1-5). Read the entire book of Hebrews to better understand the work of Christ on your behalf in the heavenly Sanctuary (Especially note Heb 2:17-3:1; 4:14-16; 6:17-20; 7:25-8:6; 9:1-10:39; 11:1-12:7; 12:22-25; 13:20-21.) We understand the antitypical Sanctuary in heaven through the earthly tabernacle that preceded it.

"Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an High Priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; a minister of the Sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man." Hebrews 8: 1-2.

In the earthly sanctuary, the priest ministered all year long in the first apartment. But at the end of the year, on the Day of Atonement, there was a work of judgment and putting away of sin from the Sanctuary and from the people (Lev 16: 30-34). Christ is the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world (John 1:29). On the mount of Calvary, Christ died for all the world. After His ascension in 31 A.D., He began His intercession, on behalf of those who would accept His sacrifice, in the great Sanctuary in heaven (Heb 8:1-5). As in the earthly sanctuary, His work began in the first apartment in that heavenly Sanctuary, but the time must eventually come when He was to enter upon His final work of atonement, foreshadowed in Leviticus 16, when He would cleanse the Sanctuary of sin, preparatory to returning to earth the second time. This special work that must be done prior to His Second Advent would involve a work of judgment, an investigation of the books of heaven, that all the intelligences of the universe might know that all who had genuinely accepted Christ as their Saviour and had obeyed His Written Word would have a place in His Kingdom.

The prophecy of Daniel 8:14 identified the time when this special work of judgment and cleansing of the Sanctuary would begin. Daniel 2, 7, 8 and 9 are closely connected, and predict coming ages from Daniel's time (550-600 years before the time of Christ) down to the Second Advent. "Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the Sanctuary be cleansed." (Daniel 8:14) We know from the book of Hebrews that Christ began His ministry, in the heavenly Sanctuary after His death and ascension. Daniel 8:14 tells us when He began the final part of the atonement—His ministry within the second apartment. Here is a brief summary of this prophecy:

“The 2300 days had been found to begin when the commandment of Artaxerxes for the restoration and building of Jerusalem, went into effect, in the autumn of 457 B.C. Taking this as the starting-point, there was perfect harmony in the application of all the events foretold in the explanation of that period in Daniel 9: 25-27. Sixty-nine weeks, the first 483 of the 2300 years, were to reach to the Messiah, the Anointed One; and Christ's baptism and anointing by the Holy Spirit, A.D. 27, exactly fulfilled the specification. In the midst of the seventieth week, Messiah was to be cut off. Three and a half years after His baptism, Christ was crucified, in the spring of A.D. 31. The seventy weeks, or 490 years [as given in Daniel 9:24-27], were to pertain especially to the Jews. At the expiration of this period, the nation sealed its rejection of Christ by the persecution of His disciples, and the apostles turned to the Gentiles, A.D. 34. The first 490 years of the 2300 having then ended, 1810 years would remain. From A.D. 34, 1810 years extend to 1844. 'Then,' said the angel, 'shall the Sanctuary be cleansed.' "—Great Controversy, 410.'

It is truly marvelous how God predicted the exact year in which Christ would be baptized, and the very year in which He would die—almost 500 years before the events took place! Just so surely, the exact year in which the antitypical Day of Atonement experience would begin (Leviticus 16:30-34) was also foretold: 1844, when Jesus entered the second apartment of the heavenly Sanctuary to begin His final work—to cleanse the Sanctuary of the records of sin.

But this work of cleansing must first include an examination of the records of men's lives in order that all the universe might know exactly who, down through the ages, had genuinely accepted God's provision for their salvation. This work of judgment in heaven above is called the Investigative Judgment, and it immediately precedes the return of Christ to this earth for His own. According to Bible prophecy, we today are living at the end of time.

 A special threefold message is given in Revelation 14 for those living in this final hour of earth's history—the hour of judgment: "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment is come, and worship Him that made heaven and earth." (Revelation 14:7) These solemn messages of Revelation 14:6-12 also warn against receiving the Mark of the Beast, and this is understandable, for the message of Revelation 14 is closely connected with the solemn warning of Revelation 13 about the terrible beast-mark.

In view of such an end-time crisis as this, it is very under­standable that the God of heaven would send special counsels in these last days—to us, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

God sent a prophet. . just when the prophet was needed,—before time ended and as the investigative judgment began in heaven.

Truly, this is a solemn hour in earth's history. It is a time when men never needed God more—and yet a time when they are living in rebellion against Him.

Continue chapter 13